Burlington, VT – The American Canadian Tour (ACT) crowned Brian Hoar of Williston, VT and Patrick Laperle of St-Denis, Quebec as the ACT Tour and Série ACT Castrol stock car racing champions respectively, at the ACT Banquet of Champions on Saturday, January 21 at the Double Tree [...]]]>
Jimmy “Scruffy” Linardy Receives MacTavish Award

Burlington, VT – The American Canadian Tour (ACT) crowned Brian Hoar of Williston, VT and Patrick Laperle of St-Denis, Quebec as the ACT Tour and Série ACT Castrol stock car racing champions respectively, at the ACT Banquet of Champions on Saturday, January 21 at the Double Tree Inn in Burlington, VT. It was the first ever combined banquet for the sister championship stock car racing series. Both champions cashed a point fund check of $10,000.

Hoar earned his eighth career championship on the U.S.-based ACT Tour during another strong season in which he earned five wins in 12 events. With those five wins he solidified himself on top of the ACT Late Model career wins list with 33 and added wins at four new tracks including New Hampshire Motor Speedway. He also won the Showdown at Chaudiere in Vallee-Jct., Quebec and the 49th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl at Barre, VT’s Thunder Road. Hoar and car owner Rick Paya earned their third straight ACT Tour title.

Laperle earned his second career title on the Quebec-based Série ACT Castrol. He finished the season with four wins in his 12 events, including his first ever win in the Quebec season finale St-Eustache 300 at Autodrome St-Eustache. Laperle and his crew chief brother, Eric, now have 13 career wins on the Série ACT Castrol. Patrick is also the 2008 ACT Tour (U.S.) Champion and three-time People’s United Bank Milk Bowl Champion.

The 43rd Annual Don MacTavish Award went to ACT veteran Jimmy “Scruffy” Linardy of Somerville, MA. The prestigious MacTavish Award is named for legendary New England racer Don MacTavish who was killed in 1969 while racing at Daytona International Speedway. Linardy received the award for his continued support of ACT and Northeast stock car racing and his always positive attitude. Those qualities also helped Linardy grace the cover of this month’s edition of Late Model Racer magazine.

Wayne Helliwell, Jr. of Dover, NH and car owner Bruce Bernhardt were honored for their second straight Ford Blue Oval Cup Championship. The special program was designed for competitors who ran the Ford crate engine on the ACT Late Model Tour, Série ACT Castrol Edge or any of the twelve ACT affiliated tracks. Helliwell is a multi-time Lee USA Speedway Champion and joined the ACT Tour full-time in 2011. While visiting most of the tracks on the ACT schedule for the first time, they put together an impressive season with 10 top tens in 12 starts and earned second in the ACT Tour standings. They also earned feature wins at Twin State Speedway and Waterford Speedbowl on their way to the Ford title.

Rookie of the Year honors went to Ben Ashline of Pittston, ME and Yannick Tremblay of Chicoutimi, Quebec for the ACT Tour and Série ACT Castrol, respectively. The 21-year-old Ashline and his family team claimed 9th in the final standings of the ACT Tour. They also earned a career best 5th place finish in the Spring Green at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven, VT. Tremblay finished 9th in the Série ACT Castrol standings on his way to the Rookie title. He also gained the respect of the veterans with his clean driving on his way to just one did not finish for the year.

The Crew Chief of the Year Awards were awarded for the fourth consecutive season on the U.S. tour and for the first time on the Série ACT Castrol. Eric Laperle earned the first ever Castrol Crew Chief Award as part of the two-time Série ACT Castrol Championship team with his brother Patrick behind the wheel. Bruce Bernhardt received the fourth ACT Tour Crew Chief of the Year Award as part of the second place ACT Tour and Ford Blue Oval Cup Championship team with driver Wayne Helliwell, Jr.

Teams will continue to prepare their cars for the 2012 seasons during the winter months. The U.S.-based ACT Tour will start their season at Lee USA Speedway in Lee, NH with a 150-lap event on Sunday, April 15. The Quebec-based Série ACT Castrol kicks off their season with a 100-lap event at Autodrome Montmagny in Montmagny, Quebec on Saturday, May 26. The 2012 Série ACT Castrol schedule will consist of 12 events, while the ACT Tour will hold 10 events. Special events include the 50th People’s United Bank Milk Bowl at Thunder Road, the fourth annual ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the Showdown at Chaudiere at Autodrome Chaudiere, and the Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway.

For more information contact the ACT office (802) 244-6963, media@acttour.com or visit www.acttour.com.

Waterbury, VT – Eight-time American Canadian Tour Champion Brian Hoar of Williston, VT topped the $250,000 mark in career earnings during the 2011 season. Including special events, Hoar pocketed $65,000 in 2011 alone.

Hoar and his Rick Paya Motorsports team put together one of the greatest ACT Late Model seasons ever to claim their [...]]]>

Waterbury, VT – Eight-time American Canadian Tour Champion Brian Hoar of Williston, VT topped the $250,000 mark in career earnings during the 2011 season. Including special events, Hoar pocketed $65,000 in 2011 alone.

Hoar and his Rick Paya Motorsports team put together one of the greatest ACT Late Model seasons ever to claim their third straight title. While finishing outside the top ten just once in twelve starts, the team managed to tie the previous record for most wins in a season with five, which Hoar set back in 1999. Those five wins bring Hoar’s record career wins total to 33.

Not included in those statistics are the special events of 2011. The Goss Dodge Chrysler team claimed wins in the 49th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl at Thunder Road (Barre, VT), the Showdown at Chaudiere at Autodrome Chaudiere (Vallee Jct., QC), and a 100-lap segment of the Goodyear Speedweeks Cup at New Smyrna Speedway (New Smyrna Beach, FL). Their Milk Bowl win alone earned them over $13,000 with combined special event winnings surpassing the $20,000 mark.

Hoar will be honored as the Champion for the 8th time in twenty ACT Late Model seasons at the 2011 Banquet of Champions in January of 2012. More details on the banquet will be announced soon.

Brian Hoar: PASS North Series
Oxford Plains Speedway Race Report

OXFORD, Maine – Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., posted his first career PASS North Series Top-5 finish by finishing fifth in the PASS Championship 150 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine, on Saturday, October. 14. Hoar started on the outside pole after [...]]]>

Brian Hoar: PASS North Series
Oxford Plains Speedway Race Report

OXFORD, Maine – Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., posted his first career PASS North Series Top-5 finish by finishing fifth in the PASS Championship 150 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine, on Saturday, October. 14. Hoar started on the outside pole after winning his heat race and led a total of 40 laps in the first half of the event, which was shortened to 118 laps by rain. The RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge loosened up significantly on the eight-time ACT Late Model Tour champion, who finished 11th in his PASS Super Late Model debut at Oxford back in July.

WHO: Brian Hoar, Williston, Vt.
TEAM: RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge
CREW CHIEF: Rick Paya, Georgia, Vt.

WHAT: PASS North Series PASS Championship 150
WHERE: Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Maine (.375-mile oval)
STARTED: 2nd
FINISHED: 5th
LAPS LED: 1 time for 40 laps

********************

BRIAN, HOW DID THINGS GO FOR YOU?

“The car was pretty decent for the first 70 laps, but she got pretty loose on me. I think the stagger grew on us big-time. That’s what it acted like. The car is pretty stagger-sensitive, but we had some fun. The car early on was just really, really hooked – but I could feel right from the green flag that it was a little on the neutral side, and it just went looser and looser from there. But it was still a good experience, a lot of fun, and I had a good time racing with the guys out here.

“It would have been interesting (if the race restarted after the rain) with a green race track again and a full fuel load to see what would happen. I think it would have (picked) the car back up.”

DID YOU GUYS LEARN A LITTLE MORE WITH THIS RACE?

“Definitely. That’s the biggest thing right now, is just these tires and figuring them out. I’m interested to hear what the stagger was.

“As far as I go, having a little bit of a feel for knowing where the car was in my heat race. That’s exactly how we took the green flag, not really knowing what we wanted to do. I just don’t have enough experience with these tires. If I were to go back, obviously, I’d tighten it up a little bit. Live and learn.”

BARRE, Vt. – Brian Hoar put the finishing touches on a record-setting 2011 season Sunday by winning the 49 annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl at Thunder Road International Speedbowl.

Hoar won his fifth career Milk Bowl pole in the event and won the first [...]]]>
Brian Hoar Collects 3rd Career Milk Bowl Win

BARRE, Vt. – Brian Hoar put the finishing touches on a record-setting 2011 season Sunday by winning the 49 annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl at Thunder Road International Speedbowl.

Hoar won his fifth career Milk Bowl pole in the event and won the first and third segments Sunday for his third career Milk Bowl championship. With the two segment wins, Hoar moved into sole possession of third-place for all-time segment wins.

“This is unbelievable,” Hoar said. “Man, that was awesome. I thought I lost it. It was wicked. I mean, unbelievable. It had been so many years since I won a race here, and I’ve always said the Milk Bowls that I won back in the ’90s were just awesome.”

Hoar finished with a three-segment total of 14 points, including two wins and a 12th-place finish in the second segment. Hoar also won the event in 1998 and 1999.

Hoar and the No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge took the lead from Randy Potter on Lap 62 and then held off part-time RPM Motorsports teammate Nick Sweet over the final 13 laps.

The win capped off a stellar season for both Hoar and RPM Motorsports, who each won a record eighth ACT Late Model Tour championship. Hoar won six points races during the campaign and now has 33 career Tour victories, which is also a record.

In addition, Hoar won the ACT Goodyear Speedweeks Cup – a non-points event in Florida in February.

Hoar put the finishing touches on the ACT regular season on Saturday, finishing sixth in the Rent-A-Wreck Fall Foliage 200 at Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y. In 13 starts this season, Hoar posted only one finish of worse than sixth.

Barre, VT – Eight-time ACT Late Model Tour Champion Brian Hoar of Williston, VT claimed his third career People’s United Bank Milk Bowl win at Thunder Road in Barre, VT on Sunday, October 9. Hoar claimed the 49th running of the Milk Bowl by [...]]]>
O’Donnell, Adams and Woodard Lock Up Thunder Road Championships

Barre, VT – Eight-time ACT Late Model Tour Champion Brian Hoar of Williston, VT claimed his third career People’s United Bank Milk Bowl win at Thunder Road in Barre, VT on Sunday, October 9. Hoar claimed the 49th running of the Milk Bowl by winning two segments, while holding off a hard charging Nick Sweet over the final 15 laps of the third and final segment. Hoar and his Rick Paya Motorsports team will cash a check of over $10,000 including lap money.

Hoar claimed the Booth Bros./H.P. Hood pole award, setting the fast time in time trials. He cruised to an easy first segment win while leading all 50 laps. Sweet was on his back bumper to take second. The two then worked their way through the field during the 75-lap second segment with Hoar taking twelfth and Sweet in tenth.

The two trailed Scott Payea going into the third segment of 75 laps. Payea held the lead with ten points (4th and 6th), while Sweet had twelve points and Hoar had thirteen.

Sweet, the 2010 Thunder Road “King of the Road,” followed Hoar through the field during the third and final segment including a three wide move to stick to Hoar’s rear bumper. The duo took the first and second spots with under fifteen laps remaining to setup the final duel. Sweet made a charge on the outside, but didn’t have enough to get by. The pair both finished with a combined 14 points with Hoar winning the tie breaker with a better third segment finish.

Payea worked his way up to a twelfth place finish in the third segment to take third overall with 22 points. Lt. Governor Phil Scott (23 pts.) and Jean-Paul Cyr (24 pts.) completed the top five. 2011 “King of the Road” Dave Pembroke (24pts.) took sixth followed by 2010 Milk Bowl Champion Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. (25 pts.) in seventh. Mike Bailey claimed the second segment win for eighth with 33 points. Austin Theriault (36 pts.) and Craig Bushey (40 points) rounded out the top ten.

Derrick O’Donnell of Bradford, VT picked up his third win of the season and took the 2011 Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen Championship. O’Donnell out ran Jason Allen, Shawn Fleury, Eric Badore and Jason Corliss to cap off his championship season. Brendan Moodie, Mike Ziter, Alex Ferno, Kyle Pembroke and Christopher Pelkey completed the top ten.

Hardwick, VT’s Greg Adams, Jr. claimed the Allen Lumber Street Stock Championship by just three points after finishing sixth in the final feature. Troy Kingsbury claimed the feature win with Thomas Placey in second. Nick Pilotte took third, which was just three points behind Adams in the title hunt. Keith Fortier and Kyle Streeter completed the top five.

Jason Woodard of Waterbury, VT capped off his Junkyard Warrior championship with his ninth win of the season. Danny Brassard and Tommy Elwood completed the podium.

The 49th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl was the final event of the 52nd Thunder Road International Speedbowl season.

49th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl Unofficial Results
Thunder Road International Speedbowl
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Pos. (Car#) Driver, Hometown, Seg. 1, Seg. 2, Seg. 3, Overall
1. (37vt) Brian Hoar, Williston, VT, 1, 12, 1, 14

2. (88vt) Nick Sweet, Barre, VT, 2, 10, 2, 14

3. (89vt) Scott Payea, Milton, VT, 4, 6, 12, 22

4. (14vt) Phil Scott, Berlin, VT, 12, 3, 8, 23

5. (32vt) Jean-Paul Cyr, Milton, VT, 7, 8, 9, 24

6. (44vt) Dave Pembroke, Middlesex, VT, 3, 11, 10, 24

7. (97nh) Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, NH, 5, 14, 6, 25

8. (00vt) Mike Bailey, South Barre, VT, 14, 1, 18, 33

9. (57me) Austin Theriault, Fort Kent, ME, 9, 20, 7, 36

10. (05vt) Craig Bushey, Fairfax, VT, 16, 2, 22, 40

11. (99vt) Cody Blake, Barre, VT, 6, 22, 13, 41

12. (42vt) Matt White, Northfield, VT, 23, 4, 15, 42

13. (81vt) Grant Folsom, Waitsfield, VT, 8, 13, 21, 42

14. (55vt) Brent Dragon, Milton, VT, 10, 9, 25, 44

15. (51me) Ricky Rolfe, Albany Twp., ME, 19, 21, 5, 45

16. (02nh) Randy Potter, Groveton, NH, 28, 18, 3, 49

17. (26vt) John Donahue, Graniteville, VT, 29, 16, 4, 49

18. (7me) Glen Luce, Turner, ME, 25, 15, 11, 51

19. (22vt) Chip Grenier, Graniteville, VT, 18, 5, 28, 51

20. (10nh) Ben Rowe, Turner, ME, 15, 23, 14, 52

21. (41vt) Jamie Aube, N. Ferrisburgh, VT, 22, 7, 26, 55

22. (4on) Jonathan Urlin, London, ON, 21, 19, 16, 56

23. (6vt) Cris Michaud, E. Montpelier, VT, 11, 26, 19, 56

24. (40vt) Eric Chase, Milton, VT, 20, 17, 23, 60

25. (25vt) Dave Whitcomb, Essex Jct., VT, 13, 28, 27, 68

26. (68vt) Brooks Clark, Fayston, VT, 30, 24, 17, 71

27. (85vt) Trampas Demers, S. Burlington, VT, 17, 25, 31, 73

28. (16nh) Travis Fadden, N. Haverhill, NH, 27, 29, 20, 76

29. (16vt) Joey Becker, Jeffersonville, VT, 26, 27, 24, 77

30. (78nh) Quinten Welch, Lancaster, NH, 24, 30, 31, 85

Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen Unofficial Top Ten

Pos. (Car#) Driver, Hometown

1. (68) Derrick O’Donnell, Bradford, VT

2. (29) Jason Allen, Barre, VT

3. (31) Shawn Fleury, Middlesex, VT

4. (04) Eric Badore, Milton, VT

5. (61) Jason Corliss, Danville, VT

6. (94) Brendan Moodie, Wolcott, VT

7. (26) Mike Ziter, Williamstown, VT

8. (33) Alex Ferno, E. Montpelier, VT

9. (27) #Kyle Pembroke, Montpelier, VT

10. (64) Christopher Pelkey, S. Barre, VT

Allen Lumber Street Stocks Unofficial Top Ten

Pos. (Car#) Driver, Hometown

1. (39) Troy Kingsbury, Waitsfield, VT

2. (33) Thomas Placey, Bradford, VT

3. (11) Nick Pilotte, Jefferson, NH

4. (35) Keith Fortier, Hinesburg, VT

5. (37) Kyle Streeter, Waitsfield, VT

6. (38) Greg Adams, Jr., Hardwick, VT

7. (4) Ken Christman, Cabot, VT

8. (03) Jason Kenison, Groveton, NH

9. (10) Alan Maynard, Fairfax, VT

10. (43) Jamie Davis, Wolcott, VT

Junkyard Warriors Unofficial Top Three

Pos. (Car #) Driver, Hometown

1. (68) Jason Woodard, Waterbury, VT

2. (30) Danny Brassard, E. Randolph, VT

3. (88) Tommy Elwood, Morrisville, VT

THE STORY

Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., looks for his second weekend sweep of the season when the ACT Late Model Tour competes on back-to-back days this weekend. First, ACT wraps up its season with the Fall Foliage 200 at Airborne Speedway in [...]]]> Brian Hoar: ACT Late Model Tour
Airborne Speedway/Milk Bowl Race Preview

THE STORY

Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., looks for his second weekend sweep of the season when the ACT Late Model Tour competes on back-to-back days this weekend. First, ACT wraps up its season with the Fall Foliage 200 at Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y., on Saturday, October 8 before heading east to stage the 49th annual Milk Bowl at Thunder Road International Speedbowl in Barre, Vt. Hoar clinched a record eighth series championship after winning both the All-Star Showdown at Chaudiere and the Can-Am 200 on back-to-back days in Quebec in mid-September. Hoar is a two-time champion of the prestigious and unique Milk Bowl – which was rained out last weekend – and a past winner of the Fall Foliage 200, a combination event for the ACT Late Model Tour and the ACT Castrol Series.

THE FACTS
WHO: Brian Hoar, Williston, Vt.
TEAM: RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge
CREW CHIEF: Rick Paya, Georgia, Vt.

BEST CAREER AIRBORNE SPEEDWAY FINISH: 1st (multiple times)
LAST RACE AT AIRBORNE SPEEDWAY: 2nd (September 2010)

BEST CAREER MILK BOWL FINISH: 1st (2 times)
LAST MILK BOWL FINISH: 2nd (October 2010)

WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour Fall Foliage 200 (season finale)
WHERE: Airborne Speedway, Plattsburgh, N.Y. (.500-mile flat oval)
WHEN: 1 p.m., Saturday, October 8

WHAT: 49th annual Milk Bowl
WHERE: Thunder Road International Speedbowl, Barre, Vt. (.25-mile oval)
WHEN: 12 noon, Sunday, October 9

ACT LATE MODEL TOUR
LAST RACE: 3rd annual ACT Invitational, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon, N.H. (6th)
POINTS POSITION: 1st

DID YOU KNOW?

Brian Hoar won back-to-back Milk Bowl championships in 1999 and 2000, part of a stretch in which he also captured four consecutive pole positions for the event.
RPM Motorsports and Brian Hoar each collected their eighth ACT Late Model Tour championships this season, with Hoar winning eight as a driver and Rick Paya winning eight as a car owner – including five with driver Jean-Paul Cyr.
Brian Hoar has 33 career victories, the most by any driver in ACT history.
Brian Hoar has finished second in each of the last two Fall Foliage 200s.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

BRIAN HOAR, Driver of the No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge, on tackling a doubleheader weekend this weekend: “It’s going to be a long weekend. It’s going to be a tough weekend. We’ve got two really big events, very similar to when we went up to Canada (in September). At Airborne, it’s 200 laps, and we’ve got a lot of work to get done. It’s a big deal to us – we want to finish off the points deal strong.
“We’re going to try to run same car for both races, so that could be tough. Of course, personally, the pressure’s on because they’re our two big local races.”

On whether he changes his approach to racing with the ACT championship already decided: “No, I don’t think so. I don’t think (go-for-broke is) my style, anyway. I race a certain way, and that’s how I’ve been successful. We’ve had one of the cars to beat over there (at Airborne) the last couple years, so we’re going over there to try to win. But like I always say, if I can’t win, I want to be second; if I can’t be second, I want to be third; and so on.
“I just like to go out and try and put pressure on everybody else.”

On what the Milk Bowl means: “It’s a big deal. It’s one of those ones that’s just a tough, tough race. I’ve always said that winning in 1999 and 2000 – those were a couple of my biggest wins in my career. I still stick to that.
“It’s just a tough place. I haven’t pulled off being truly successful at Thunder Road in a couple of years… Vermont Motorsports Magazine has a media poll on who people think is going to win, and I wasn’t ranked at all, and it shows that I haven’t been all that successful. We’ve got to step up our game.

“On a side note, my daughters want to see me in Victory Lane at the Milk Bowl. In their minds, that is ‘The Race.’ There is no other race for them. It has all the stuff going on with it, it has all that prestige. To them, it’s all about me winning that one race – if for no other reason than they just want to see me kiss the cow.”

ACT Forum
ACT News

LOUDON, N.H. – Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., finished fifth in the ACT Late Model Tour’s 3rd annual ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 24. After a brief, rain-shortened practice session in the morning, Hoar started 26th in [...]]]>
Brian Hoar: ACT Invitational
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Race Report

LOUDON, N.H. – Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., finished fifth in the ACT Late Model Tour’s 3rd annual ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 24. After a brief, rain-shortened practice session in the morning, Hoar started 26th in the 43-car field. He drove his way to the Top-10 by the halfway point of the race and continued his march to the front, but a tight handling race car halted his march on a couple of late restarts. Hoar and his RPM Motorsports team recently secured an unprecedented eighth ACT Late Model Tour championship two weeks ago and will run the 49th People’s United Bank Milk Bowl at Thunder Road International Speedbowl in Barre, Vt. on Sunday, October 2nd.

WHO: Brian Hoar, Williston,Vt.
TEAM: RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge
CREW CHIEF: Rick Paya, Georgia, Vt.

WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour 3rd annual ACT Invitational
WHERE: New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon, N.H. (1.058-mile oval)
STARTED: 26th
FINISHED: 5th

ACT Late Model Tour
LAST RACE: September 11, Can-Am 200, Circuit Riverside, Ste-Croix, Que. (1st)
NEXT RACE: October 1-2, 49th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl, Thunder Road International Speedbowl, Barre, Vt. (.25-mile oval)
POINTS POSITION: 1st

****************************

BRIAN, TALK ABOUT YOUR DAY.

“We had fun right up until we got tangled up with (Pete Yetman) and crashed him. I feel horrible. It was my fault. It’s kind of unfortunate. The last thing I want to do is get caught up in a wreck and watch someone get their car torn up when we were having a good race with the guy.

“Overall, we just missed the setup. Just a little bit off. We were really, really tight. I think I know what the problem was. I think if we would have had a real practice this morning, or I put my rain tires on, I probably would have found the problem in the car but I didn’t find it until the green flag flew on the feature. Immediately I went, ‘Uh-oh, it’s going to be a long day.’”

WHAT IS IT LIKE RACING AT NEW HAMPSHIRE MOTOR SPEEDWAY?

“It’s still fun. I love coming to New Hampshire. It’s a great race track and there’s a huge fan base here. It’s like a big version of Thunder Road. It’s all of us guys from all over New England and Canada that have fans here. So it’s a really neat experience. It’s such a cool deal that we can even come here with our short track cars and race on this big track. I’m really, really psyched.

“Everybody does such a good job. We’re such low men on the totem pole and we come here at 6 in the morning and not race until almost 12 hours later. The fans stuck for it. The weather turned out great. The car’s in one piece and we have a car to come back with. There’s always next week, and we finished fifth so it wasn’t that bad. It was a fun race.”

GEORGIA, Vt. – If the inaugural All-Star Challenge at New Hampshire Motor Speedway back in August was the ACT Late Model Tour’s “Daytona 500,” then this weekend’s event at the Magic Mile is Late Model [...]]]>
Brian Hoar Looks For New Hampshire Repeat
8-time ACT Late Model Tour Champion Roars Into Magic Mile

GEORGIA, Vt. – If the inaugural All-Star Challenge at New Hampshire Motor Speedway back in August was the ACT Late Model Tour’s “Daytona 500,” then this weekend’s event at the Magic Mile is Late Model racing’s Bristol, Charlotte and Talladega all wrapped into one.

And Brian Hoar will gladly take center stage in the third annual ACT Invitational on the flat, one-mile oval in Loudon, N.H.

“It’s one of the biggest races and the biggest track that we run,” Hoar said. “I like racing there. I really like the track.”

The ACT Invitational is a 50-lap event featuring the top teams from the ACT Late Model Tour, its Quebec counterpart the ACT Castrol Series, and weekly competition at ACT-sanctioned short tracks across New England, Ontario and Quebec. Following a brief practice session in the morning, the 43-car ACT Invitational field will take the green flag at 5:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon.

Hoar looks for the season sweep of ACT events at New Hampshire this weekend, having won the ACT All-Star Challenge at the facility back in August. That race was the first-ever ACT points race held at NHMS, and it served as one of seven victories in 2011 for the driver of the RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge.

“I’ve been after this thing for 10 years or so with the (NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) cars and now these ACT cars,” said Hoar, who held the K&N Pro Series track record for nearly a decade before it was broken in 2010. “We’ve had an awesome car every time we’ve come here.”

No driver has been more dominant in ACT Late Model Tour competition than Hoar.

The Williston, Vt., driver clinched his record eighth series championship with a win in the Can-Am 200 at Circuit Riverside in Ste-Croix, Quebec, earlier this month, and his 33 career ACT victories are the most by any driver in ACT history.

No other driver has cracked the 20-win plateau in ACT competition.

Hoar’s success has not come alone. RPM Motorsports owner and crew chief Rick Paya of Georgia, Vt., also is the owner of eight career ACT championships. The last three in a row came with Hoar behind the wheel of the RPM ride.

Winning at New Hampshire in August was emotional for Paya.

“This is really special,” Paya said after the victory. “This is our Daytona 500. This win is going to be one of our pride and joys. Brian and I have always talked about what a special place this is to win.”

THE STORY

Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., looks to make it two ACT Late Model Tour victories in a row when the Tour heads to the Q 97.9 ACT 150 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine, on Saturday, August 20. [...]]]>
Brian Hoar: ACT Late Model Tour
Oxford Plains Speedway Race Preview

THE STORY

Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., looks to make it two ACT Late Model Tour victories in a row when the Tour heads to the Q 97.9 ACT 150 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine, on Saturday, August 20. Hoar has five wins this season in his pursuit of his record eighth career ACT championship after winning the inaugural ACT All-Star Challenge at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last weekend. Hoar has never won at Oxford, though he he has not finished outside the Top-5 in two starts at the track this season in the RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge.

THE FACTS
WHO: Brian Hoar, Williston, Vt.
TEAM: RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge
CREW CHIEF: Rick Paya, Georgia, Vt.

BEST CAREER OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY FINISH: 2nd (June 2011)
LAST RACE AT OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY: 2nd (June 2011)

WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour Q 97.9 ACT 150
WHERE: Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Maine (.375-mile oval)
WHEN: 6:30 p.m., Saturday, August 20

ACT LATE MODEL TOUR
LAST RACE: August 13, ACT All-Star Challenge, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon, N.H. (1st)
NEXT RACE: August 27, ACT 200, Riverside Speedway, St. Croix, Que. (.625-mile oval)
POINTS POSITION: 1st

DID YOU KNOW?

Brian Hoar has won races this season at two tracks where he’d never previously won – New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Twin State Speedway.
RPM Motorsports will have Thunder Road International Speedbowl champion Nick Sweet in the No. 57 RPM Racing Engines Ford as a teammate to Brian Hoar for the first time this season.
Brian Hoar has 32 career victories, the most by any driver in ACT history.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

BRIAN HOAR, Driver of the No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge, on last weekend’s win at New Hampshire: “I’ve still woken up with a smile on my face every morning this week. It still feels really good, obviously. That trophy has a special place, that’s for sure.”

On heading to Oxford Plains Speedway this weekend: “Going to tell Rick Paya) that we’ve got a good car and not a great car, and that’ we’ve got to step it up. It worked at Loudon, so let’s see if it works again.

“We’ve had a really good setup at Oxford. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing left to gain, but we’ve been consistently fast every time we’ve shown up there. I enjoy racing there, I like gong there, but it’s a tough place for me. I’m fortunate to have had as many good runs as I’ve had there. I’m just going to keep doing what I’ve been doing. If you keep putting yourself in position, you’re going to win one.”

On having Nick Sweet as a teammate at RPM Motorsports this weekend: “I’m excited. Nick gets around Oxford really well. I think his feedback will be really good for the team. It just seems like in the last three years when he’s shown up for the (Oxford) 250, he’s been really fast.”

On returning to a more ‘normal’ race setting this weekend: “Actually, I think these races are a bit refreshing in away. You put so much energy and get so focused on the big races, whether it’s a good weekend or a bad weekend. If you have a bad weekend it drains you, if you win, it takes a while to come off that high, too.

“These little weekends are a lot of fun. Maybe you don’t put as much pressure on yourself, but the points are still out there.”

UP NEXT
The ACT Late Model Tour heads north to Riverside Speedway in St. Croix, Que., for the ACT 200 on Saturday, August 27… Brian Hoar and his RPM Motorsports team are the defending champions of an event that was marred by cautions last season and eventually shortened to 171 laps by a local curfew.

ACT Forum

Keep your computer files backed up and safe try Mozy.com for free – https://secure.mozy.com/?ref=NWH4DL
ACT News